I was gonna dress up as a ringmaster. I would’ve done so had I been a bit more organised, although pheweee it was hot. Chances are I would have died of heat exposure. I didn’t dress up. I didn’t give myself time.
Yesterday I was in Eastbourne.
Today I went to The Battersea Car Boot Sale. I was there to sell.
At 9am I arrived at my friend’s place. She also has tons of stuff to get rid of. We loaded up and I genuinely started to worry that I wouldn’t get my bits and bobs into the car as well. Turns out my fear was unfounded. We got back to mine and piled up a load of old comics and boxes of shirts and tut and it all went in. Dear old Bergman. He’s fat when he needs to be.
We had a decent pitch, and we had good neighbours. We had the most eclectic mix of stuff of any stall there, we were told. But we were totally disorganised. I think I’d imagined a firebreak where we dressed the stall and then had time to think about what to sell things for. We just got thrust into the mix. The first people round are dealers, and I expected them. They try to skim all the value. I didn’t let them. Then the early bird members of the public. I’m still learning this game, but it seems that they want to feel they’ve got a bargain. Everybody we met today got a bargain though, but they were the type to say “90p” when you had just suggested a quid.
Some things I held firm on. Other things I just let go. I’m not having seller’s regret yet, even though I let some things go for very little. A small shy transatlantic girl ended up buying a huge box of damaged comics from my childhood for virtually nothing. I was just happy to see them go to a good home.
I think that’s been the issue for a while now with this stuff. I like the cycle. I like energy to move. Stagnation is anathema. These items could mostly have gone to landfill. The boxes of stained and smelly shirts. The torn and dogeared comics… They’re never going to interest a dealer. I didn’t want to have to take them back into my flat though, and faced with that prospect I gave whatever price I could to ensure that wouldn’t happen. And I feel good about it. Somewhere now there’s a young woman with an American mother and a largely absent father… She’s got a bunch of my childhood comics, and even though they were clearly aimed at boys in the nineties, they aren’t bad. Loads of 2000AD, some Batman, Justice League… These stories helped me establish my morality. I’ve passed them on to the right human.
So much stuff moved, but another week of it would be excellent. Annoyingly I thought I was free next Sunday, but I’m filming. It’ll have to be when I’m back from Sardinia.
Next time I’m gonna get into costume and do it properly… Today was enjoyable, but it was a test. I can ask for more money when I’m wearing a costume. And what’s the point of having such an extensive wardrobe if I don’t make use of it…
AlBarclay 